


build and undo

by kisumia



Category: NCT (Band), WAYV
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Love Ensues - Freeform, M/M, Slow Burn, ceo!ten, may have smut but we still deciding, secretary!hendery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-02
Updated: 2019-07-24
Packaged: 2020-06-02 19:49:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19448356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kisumia/pseuds/kisumia
Summary: Ten built himself up brick by brick, layer by layer. What he didn’t know was that Hendery would be behind him, taking him apart, little by little.





	1. at the top

**Author's Note:**

> hello! so this is my first long writing project, so i hope it'll be okay :)) i'm lacking in ceo!ten content so i have decided to *cracks knuckles* do it myself
> 
> ANYWAYS ENJOY!!

Ten prided himself on one thing and one thing only, and that was the company he painstakingly brought up to its current awe and glory. Within years, he became one of the top entrepreneurs in the world, and placed himself on the 30 under 30 list. He was the CEO of one of the top tech companies in the world, processing some of the best and fastest technological advances in the industry. He truly had a brilliant mind, and could visualize everything clearly. 

But with the success that he gartered, he also sacrificed a lot. He sacrificed so many of his relationships in order to get to the position he was in. His father was not at all supportive in his choice of technology, the fight ensued, and now his father was no longer a part of his life. His ex-girlfriend of three years had left due to the long hours of Ten’s work day, and couldn’t bear with it. He came home to an empty studio apartment, and cried for hours on end. But he got himself back up, and worked. He worked for hours at a time, sometimes going as long as two to three days on non-stop work. But it paid off. He truly thought it paid off as he stood at the top level of his company’s building, from the comfort of his own office, overseeing the city of Shanghai. 

Honestly speaking, he was really grateful for everyone who supported him to this position, especially his two closest friends — Kun and Johnny. Those two were his right hand men, the two whom he could entrust the company with. Kun had a knack for finances and budgeting. He could see the company in numbers and create fiscal plans for years in advance. Johnny handled the visual and scientific side of everything. He created designs that seemed nearly impossible, and brings them to life through countless hours of trial and error. He conducted research for faster and better advances to the technological world. Ten oversaw projects, and was the last line of product details. He was extremely meticulous in the way he saw projects, and pointed out flaws in a heartbeat. Nothing would pass through him without it being absolutely pristine. 

The sound of his office door opening and closing, followed by two sets of footsteps, pulls Ten out of his trance and he turns around, facing Kun and Johnny, who sat on the couch quite leisurely now. “What’s up?” Ten asks them as he heads their direction.

Kun speaks up, “I crunched the numbers for your request for a new special secretary for you, and we have money within our budget to hire one.”

Ten nods with a smile on his face, “good, I’ll tell HR to send out some job listings, and I’ll take part in conducting interviews. Thanks, Kun.”

Johnny then speaks up, “hey, how about the three of us hang out at Ten’s house tonight?”

“When are we not hanging out at Ten’s house, Johnny?” Kun asks, looking at the tall man with a raised eyebrow.

“Hey, I just want to make sure. I really like the Japanese soda that Ten keeps stocked in his fridge,” Johnny comments. Ten rolls his eyes and sits back in his chair behind the desk and starts typing away.

“How about we go to dinner tonight?” Ten speaks as he types.

“Whatever works, Boss,” Kun says, nearly smacking Johnny upside the head.

“Alright, dinner is at 8, so the driver will pick us up from here, sound good?” Ten rattles off to be met with two hums of agreement, followed by the two leaving the office and the sound of his office door opening and closing. More of Ten’s typing ensues before he leans back in his chair with a long sigh, “I really need a secretary, goddamn.”

He stands up and buttons his suit jacket before he heads out of his office, heading down to the main floor. Ten’s got quite the reputation around his office. As soon as the elevator doors open and Ten presents himself, many of the co-workers start to whisper to each other, stuff about how his quiet, yet demanding stare, or his cold demeanor (none of which he doesn’t think is really true, he thinks he’s quite nice, actually). He ignores all of the small commentary and heads for the small cafeteria located in the company and orders himself a vanilla latte. _I really need a boost_ , he thinks. Once his drink is made, he takes it and gives the barista a smile and a word of thanks before he heads out. Near the elevator, he runs into his HR manager, Taeyong, and taps his shoulder to gain his attention.

“Oh, hey, Ten! What’s up?” Taeyong asks, giving Ten his full attention. 

Ten takes a sip of the hot latte before he asks, “can you post a job listing for a special secretary? I’ll be in attendance for the interviews, since the secretary will be helping me personally.”

Taeyong nods, “yeah, no worries. Is the workload getting to be a lot?”

Ten gives a nod and sighs, “yeah, there’s a lot of companies that want to do partnerships and all of that. It’d be nice to have a helping hand with reading contracts and writing up proposals.”

Taeyong gives him a smile and nods, “understood. I’ll get them posted as soon as I get into my office. You deserve a break.”

Ten pats Taeyong’s shoulder and heads back up to his office. 

_7:30 could not have rolled around any faster_ , Ten thinks as he stretches and stands up to head downstairs for dinner. As soon as he stands in front of the elevator doors, Ten feels a buzz coming from his pockets.

**From: Geo (driver)**

I’m around the back, since there are too many paparazzi in the front, sir. Kun and Johnny also have been notified.

Ten turns off his phone and heads downstairs, but instead of the usual doors of the company, he follows the directions of his driver, Geo, and heads to the back entrance, where he meets Johnny and Kun. 

Another buzz comes from Ten’s phone.

**From: Taeyong**

Got the job listing done this afternoon. There are a lot of responses, so I’ll meet with you noon tomorrow to filter out applicants.

Ten hums and texts back.

**To: Taeyong**

Sounds good. I’ll meet with you after my 9 a.m. meeting. Thanks a lot!

He pockets his phone and walks out to the car waiting in the parking lot. The ride to dinner was fairly uneventful. It was a normal routine to be at a fancy steakhouse, or Michelin-starred restaurant to talk to potential investors or contracts. But this time it seemed very… different for two reasons. One of them being that he’s just having dinner with two of his best friends. The second one was a weird feeling eating at him, but he just attributed it to lack of sleep or something. 

Dinner itself was uneventful as well, just a dinner with his friends. Johnny talks about potential developments in the works while Ten sips on his cabernet sauvignon. There’s a brief silence before Johnny brings up a topic that Ten never thought Johnny would discuss with him.

“So, Ten, when are you going to go back into the dating scene? It’s been like… 8 years since she left you. Don’t you think it’s time to start considering getting married?” Johnny asks.

Ten freezes, not intaking any of the alcohol, scared to choke on it. He sets it down after a brief second before he looks at Johnny, “No, I don’t really think about it. There’s too much work to be done. And remember she left me because I didn’t have time for her. What makes you think I’d have time now?” he asks.

Johnny shrugs, but Kun speaks up this time, “Ten, he does have a point. But maybe after you hire your special secretary.”

Ten nods slowly to shut the conversation down, but not exactly certain with the idea that his friend proposed. 


	2. Fingers Crossed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hendery really needs a job, and maybe he's found one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is in Hendery's point of view. His pov is more lighthearted, which is the different writing style I'm using as supposed to Ten's who is more serious and matter-of-factly. Enjoy!

Hendery is newly graduated from college, with fear of the adult world. As he sat on his bed, looking through the job listings on the website, his mom comes into the room, “Kunhang, baby, let’s get some dinner, yeah? You’ve been looking at job listings for two days.”

Hendery looks up at his real name and smiles, closing the laptop, “sure, Ma. I’ll come out in a second.”

Hendery’s mom left and closed the door behind her, and Hendery flops onto the bed, letting out a long sigh, “why can’t a job just drop out of the sky and hit me on the goddamn head.”

He grabs his phone and checks his notifications. His phone slips out of his hand and hits him in the face, and ironically, a notification pops up on his laptop.  _ Wow, I didn’t mean literally, but okay _ , he thinks as he rubs his face. He opens up the website and sees a listing that he’s actually qualified for. He screams (his mom busts through the door to make sure he’s okay).

At dinner, he rambles on about how he’s going to get a job now and how he’s going to be able to put some good money in his bank account. His parents can’t really help but smile at their overjoyed son.

He gets an email back after dinner that gives him his interview slot. In two days at noon. He thinks that he doesn’t have enough time, but he takes a deep breath and starts practicing his answers, regardless if he knows the questions or not. It should be easy, right? The interview from his internship a while ago wasn’t  _ that _ bad.

Two days pass and Hendery stands in front of the mirror, straightening out the suit his mom just ironed out for him. He slicks back any remaining stray hairs and hurries out of the door in a pair of brand new dress shoes (which he admits he probably spent too much money on). The way there was him trying to calm his anxiety.  _ What if I don’t get the job? What if they see me and turn me away immediately?, _ he thinks. Before he knows it, he’s standing in front of the company doors, with people whizzing past him.  _ This is it _ , he thinks.

He walks in and immediately heads straight for the receptionist and the kind lady leads him to an upper floor with many, many,  _ many _ doors. But they reach what looks like a conference room with a waiting room outside, and so he was instructed to just sit in one of the chairs and wait until his name is called. His nervously taps his foot on the carpet, and he’s glad he’s currently the only one sitting in the waiting room right now because he probably would have annoyed everyone. 

Half an hour later, a young gentleman walks out of the conference room, followed by another man, who stops short of the doorframe. “Huang Guanheng?” the gentleman spoke.

Hendery stands up and follows the man into the room, and watches as the other gentleman leave.  _ Must’ve been another interviewee _ . 

“Have a seat,” the gentleman motions, and Hendery does just that. As soon as he looks up, all of the nerves in his body just go off.  _ CEO Ten is here? _

Hendery (shakily) hands over his resume to the gentleman and sits back down.

“My name is Taeyong, and this is Ten, the CEO of this company,” the gentleman introduces.

“Nice to meet you,” Hendery starts off, “my name is Huang Guanheng, but I usually go by Hendery.”

Ten raises his eyebrows, “Hendery?”

Hendery nods, “it’s my english name. I tend to use it when I introduce myself.”

He’s met with two nods and the interview begins.

\----

“Alright, and that concludes the interview!” Taeyong announces, closing his notebook, and turns to Ten, “do you have any questions, Ten?”

Ten shakes his head and looks at Hendery, “it was nice meeting with you, Hendery! Do you have any questions for us?”

Hendery shakes his head and smiles, “I don’t have any questions. Thank you so much,” he bows and shakes their hands before he is lead out by Taeyong.

“You should be notified within two to three days,” Taeyong says with a smile before he opens the door, letting Hendery go.

Now, Hendery is feeling a bit more confident, because Ten and Taeyong were super friendly with him, though he knows not to get his hopes up too high. Hendery fights back a huge grin as he leaves the building and heads home.


	3. First Days

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello!! sorry for the long wait for this update but here it is!! sorry this seems more of a filler chapter, but it'll start to pick up soon!!

Hendery sits nervously, biting at the skin of his fingers.  _ What if I don’t get the job? I’m going to be a useless member of society. I’m never going to get married and... _ , he thinks. Every little sound makes him shift towards his phone on instinct.

Then it comes, a buzzing noise. He immediately goes to grab his phone. An unknown number. He picks up and tentatively puts the speaker up to his ear, “hello?”

“Is this Huang Guanheng?” a familiar male voice comes through.

“Yes this is he,” he responds.

“Congratulations! You got the job as the Special Secretary for Neo Tech,” the voice, which Hendery concludes Taeyong, says through the phone.

“Wait, really?” Hendery asks, “thank you so much!” He has to keep himself from screaming at this point, but he doesn’t have to stop the smile that spreads across his face.

“Yes! You will be starting on Monday, where you will start your training week. After that, you will officially have the title as Special Secretary,” Taeyong explains.

“Sounds good! Thank you again!” Hendery says before the line hangs up.

He puts his phone down and starts screaming with joy. A few seconds later, his mom pops her head through the door in concern.

“Kunhang, are you okay?” she asks.

Hendery runs over to his mom and gives her a hug and a kiss on the cheek, “Ma, I got the job!” And both mother and son are screaming in joy.

\----

Monday comes around and Hendery is dressed in his expensive dress suit, with matching dress shoes. Taeyong shows him the official tour of the company building and Hendery walks around like an awestruck puppy. He’s caught the attention of a few passing ladies, which makes him blush. He was never really good at receiving attention. 

Floor by floor, Hendery gets an idea of the layout and the specializations of each department. He didn’t even know there was a  _ gaming _ specialization. Soon enough, he finds himself stepping off of the elevator with Taeyong at the top floor. “This is Ten’s office,” Taeyong gestures towards the large wooden doors straight forward, “your desk will be right here.” Hendery’s attention is taken to a large glass desk with a large desktop placed on top, just right of the elevator, right before the door. “The break room is behind that door over there,” Taeyong points to the door just slightly off to the side of the elevator. Hendery nods, taking in all of the information.

“This is really cool… a little overwhelming, but I think I’ll adjust quickly,” Hendery smiles.

“No worries! You’re going to spend the week with me and my team and we’ll get you settled in and teach you the ropes with the technology and all of that. No sweat,” Taeyong assures him.

Hendery feels like a weight was lifted off of his shoulders, but he can only feel at ease at the end of the week. The first thing he was given as Hendery enters Taeyong’s office was a brand new laptop for out of office work. He takes it and Taeyong tells him how to log in and all of the basics. A brand new email is set up for him and is flooded with welcome emails, which warms Hendery’s heart and Taeyong’s heart by the soft smile that appears on his face.

“Ten’s always prided himself on kind words and actions. He’s not the type to be cold-blooded,” Taeyong explains. 

Hendery nods in understanding and follows Taeyong’s instructions on setting up. The rest of the day flies by and Hendery can confidently say that the company’s cafe is one of the best that he’s ever tried. As he is packing up and is getting ready to go home, Taeyong turns to him with a slightly guilty look, “hey, Ten is wondering if you can stop by his office for a bit. He wants to talk.”

Hendery nods, slightly worried, “yeah, I’ll head up there.” And so he begins his trip up the elevator. His foot taps as his anxiety rises.  _ He couldn’t have possibly messed up already, has he? _ The elevator door dings and opens shortly after and he steps out, straightening his suit jacket a bit before he knocks on the big door. A faint  _ come in _ follows.

He opens the door slowly and steps in, closing the door behind him. He bows as he faces Ten, “you called?”

Ten nods and starts, “has everything been okay today? Hopefully Taeyong isn’t overworking you on your first day.”

Hendery shakes his head and responds, “no, he’s been helping me get used to the work computers and accounts is all.”

Again, Ten nods and starts, “I hope you aren’t thinking you’re in trouble or anything. I just wanted to call you up and ask how you’re adjusting.” Ten gives Hendery a smile, which the younger thinks is quite warm and comforting. “I’ll be out the rest of the week, but continue to work with Taeyong to get used to everything,” Ten hands Hendery a card with a number scribbled at the top, “this is my personal number, so call or text if anything happens or if you need anything. You’ll probably need this later down the line anyways.”

Hendery nods and takes the card, looking at it, “yeah, I’ll let you know if anything is up.”

Hendery bows and turns on his heels to exit the room before Ten stops him, “hey, wait.”

Hendery turns back around and raises his eyebrows, “yeah?”

“Once you officially start working with me on Monday, I’ll take you out to dinner with the other two heads of the company. You are working close with me so we might as well get to know each other,” Ten says.

“Yeah, that sounds good! Thank you,” Hendery says before he gives another bow and heads out of the heavy doors, closing them behind him. Hendery thinks Ten is quite a warm person. He’s not as intimidating as all of these articles state him to be, which he kind of chuckles at.

Hendery is really looking forward to working with Ten after that meeting.


End file.
